Traces of You
by Flash.Asuna
Summary: Marceline happens upon Princess Bubblegum in a moment of weakness and attempts to repair the damage to their relationship. Something weird is going on and Bubblegum disappears at the wrong moment! Can Marceline rescue her with the help of Finn and Jake?
1. Chapter 1 - Just Beyond Reach

**Just Beyond Reach**

Marceline floated lazily in the empty airspace of her living room, plucking away at her axe bass. She'd spent most of the day being lazy around the house, but now that the sun had set, she was feeling restless. She thought about what kind of mischief she could get herself into. Finn and Jake were probably in their treehouse playing games with Beemo. Barging in on them hasn't been fun since Jake mostly got over his fear of vampires. She definitely wasn't going to see what Ice King was up to. Every time she came across that guy, he acted like a total creeper, even though she's known him for ten times longer than any of her other companions.

After a forced sigh of discontent, Marceline strapped her axe bass to her back and floated out through the window. She let her body guide itself through the night sky, soaring over Ooo with little interest. She watched the ground pass her below, seeing the naturally unusual nightlife of Ooo beginning to awaken. In a clearing in the forest, Lumpy Space Princess snored loudly next to a poorly built fire. She'd be a fun target if Marceline didn't have to listen to the fluffy purple princess whine and complain afterwards. Even the sound of LSP's voice grated on the vampire's nerves.

Continuing over the forest she smelled the signature aroma of Tree Trunks's fresh apple pies and heard the quiet lament of night time birds. Passing over all of this, Marceline still felt incredibly bored. Before long, she found herself floating in the Candy Kingdom, hovering in front of Princess Bubblegum's bedroom balcony. The faint sound of whistling could be heard through the door, meaning the pink monarch was giving up sleep for more whistling practice. A high pitched squeak followed by a loud "Himmel, Arsch, und Zwirn!" Bubblegum had clearly messed up a note.

Marceline had no idea what brought her here or rather, why her boredom brought her here. She hadn't been anywhere around Bubblegum without the company of Finn and Jake for quite some time. Not since she fell out of the candy Princess's favor. _Whatevs, _Marceline thought with a shrug, _I'll bug her anyways. It's kinda fun when she gets mad. _With a playful grin, Marceline floated to the door of the balcony. It was cracked open slightly so she peeked in. Bubblegum was no longer in her special whistling chair, but was instead standing at her desk holding a photograph in a frame. Deciding it was best to wait a minute to burst in, she quietly watched the Princess through the crack.

"Ugh, she's such a butt!" Bubblegum sighed. "Why doesn't Marceline understand that being the ruler of the Candy Kingdom is a full time job. I can't just run off with her on a whim...even if I want to." Bubblegum sat down at the desk and held her head in her hands.

They had argued about something silly, it seemed to her. Marceline had wanted to drag Bubblegum out of the kingdom and go to a music festival in the Hazy Desert. But the kingdom couldn't afford for Bubblegum to be gone for very long. She had already spent enough time away with Marceline and her band, taking more time away could severely damage the mental stability of her people. Lemongrab was not an optional backup either.

For reasons that Bubblegum didn't understand, as there was no logic to it, Marceline had blown up at her and stormed off, complaining that Bubblegum was too uptight and that she could never live up to the Princess's standards. Bubblegum had angrily snapped back at her closest friend, accusing her of being inconsiderate of peoples' responsibilities. Marceline left Ooo and disappeared for quite some time, leaving Bonnibel to suffer without her friend and the one person who made her heart guts feel as if they'd burst at any time. When Marceline finally returned, she didn't immediately seek out Bubblegum. She spent time teasing two new tenants in her old tree house; a human boy named Finn and his brother-dog Jake. In their company, she had encountered Bonnibel once or twice, but most times had been as a royal representative of the Nightosphere or as a cohort in Finn and Jake's adventures. After that, their exchanges had been short and heated at every instance. They'd have broken out into a shouting match if Finn and Jake weren't around most of the time they were on edge with each other.

But they were, for a time before their fight, very close. So close that Bonnibel nearly confessed her affections for Marceline on more than one occasion. She shared a long history with Marceline, the vampire girl who taught her about the night, who gave her her first kiss and who made the young Princess feel as if her heart guts would burst. But the vampire's emotions were constantly closed off and the Princess felt that if she told Marceline she was in love with her, it would shatter their well built relationship of friends with some sort of benefit. Little did she know that a ridiculous spat would be the cause instead.

Marceline lowered her head and frowned. She recalled the time when a Door Lord took their precious things and she nearly confessed all her frustrations to Bubblegum in a song. All she had wanted was time with Bubblegum. The Vampire Queen had loads of it, but the Candy Princess didn't. Sure, her existence was dependent on the occasional consumption of candy people to maintain her biomass, but that wasn't guaranteed to be forever. Marceline had already seen centuries and centuries pass by. It was rare that she enjoyed anyone's company and until their little fight, Princess Bonnibel Bubblegum was the only one Marceline wanted see the most. She had seen the world change and become what it is today after the Mushroom War, which is to say, it changed significantly and beautifully. There were many things that the Princess would never see from her precious Candy Kingdom and Marceline wanted to share it with her.

The vampire continued to hover quietly outside of Bonnibel's room on the balcony. Feeling somewhat like a stalker-pervert, she watched as the Princess undressed herself from her pink gown and bra, then reached into a drawer and pulled out a familiar black band t-shirt. It was quite wrinkled as Bonnibel had worn it for four days this week already. Peppermint Butler hated the shirt and tried to discard it several times, but the Princess always managed to find it and take it back.

Marceline smiled to herself, taking comfort in the thought that Bonnibel needed to sleep in something that she had given her. It wasn't new when she passed it on to the Princess. In fact, Marceline had favored the shirt herself. She recalled how excited Bonnibel seemed when she handed it to her. The Princess hugged the shirt and commented on how it smelled like Marceline, strawberries and spices. Turning back towards the crack in the doors, Marceline placed her hand on one, ready to push it open.

Bubblegum had thrown herself on her pink and purple fluffy bed with an incredibly large book in front of her. Gathering from the look on Bubblegum's face and the tint of red on her cheeks, it wasn't one of her usual science-y books. Now Marceline's curiosity had peaked. When the girl was younger, Marceline used to read to her and they had shared quiet moments together in that same bed, curled up with books on logic and history. She had never made a face like that before. Drawing upon a bit of her power, Marceline made herself invisible. She slinked her way through the crack like a spirit of smoke and hovered noiselessly above Bubblegum to peer at her book.

_"…her hands clawed at the sheets in raging passion as her lover ravaged her body like a beast in the night. His sharp fangs brushed against her skin, threatening to puncture the flesh protecting her blood filled veins. It scared her. It excited her. His vampirism captivated her in such a way that she yearned for it."_

Marceline held back a giggle and a gasp, though she felt a bit of heat in her face. Bonnibel was reading vampire smut! The widely feared Queen of the Night wondered where such a sweet thing as the Candy Princess got such a book. Deciding that this may play to her advantage and perhaps finally clear the tense air between them, Marceline slinked back out onto the balcony and reassumed her natural humanoid form. Her adult body was clothed in nothing terribly seductive, but after the years she had spent at the Princess's side, she knew exactly how to get Bonnibel's gears going. She only hoped that after their spat and their slow growth back to civility that she could achieve her goal.

Just as Marceline was ready to quietly pushed the door, she heard Bonnibel's voice, very softly whisper her name. She pressed closer to the door to listen in. Marceline felt worse and worse about her position, as she felt more like a stalker than someone who wanted to prank an old friend. But her curiosity won over her and more information would not hurt her at this point if Bonnibel was willingly giving it, although she had no idea Marceline was there.

Bonnibel was laying on her back with her arm over her face. Her freshly powdered hair lay about her in pink disarray, but more remarkably was the trail of tears that flowed from her eyes beneath the protection of her arm. Her chest heaved deeply with sobs. From her perch on the balcony, Marceline wondered what monstrosity caused the cute pink Princess to cry so hard.

"I'm sorry, Marceline…" Bonnibel whispered into the air. "I wish I didn't push you aside. I wish that you were still with me, floating around this room and playing your bass and just… just being here with me. I can't stand this."

A few more sobs shook her body and she let out a quavering sigh. Bonnibel felt a chill pass over her body and she wondered if her sadness alone could cause such a physiological reaction such as chills.

A cool hand gently took her arm and moved it away from her face, pinning it above her head, her other arm pinned against the bed by another cool hand. Bonnibel opened her tear stained eyes to see the soft smile of a familiar vampire.

"Its ok, Bonnibel. I heard you. I'm here."

Violet eyes sprung wide open as the Princess's brain registered Marceline's presence. Her body convulsed with sobs as her eyes shut tightly, tears continuing to stream down the sides of her face. Marceline silently reveled in this. She took a bit of dark pleasure in seeing the perfect Princess torn to emotional shreds in sheer want of her. It stirred something within Marceline, something primal that she hadn't felt since before the Princess's harsh words cast her away from Ooo.

"I'm here." Marceline repeated.

"Just like a hero..." Bonnibel smiled through her tears. She felt Marceline's weight upon her as the vampire brought herself in for a kiss. Their lips touched causing Bubblegum's body to ignite in a fiery passion that had been suppressed for the last two years while Marceline was her enemy. She regretted that time. She wished for those moments back and the time she lost with her favorite person. Marceline's face turned to nip at the Princess's neck, her dead lungs pushing a breath out onto her warm skin. Bubblegum was caught between increasing pleasure and emotional confusion, which is to say, a dangerous combination for any young woman to have brewing in her heart guts. "I'm sorry, Marci... I was wrong. I didn't want you to leave me. I didn't want to see you go. It drove me mad to see you having fun with Finn and Jake. I was so angry when we chased the Door Lord. I wanted to grab you then and hold you, but I'm so stupidly prideful... I let you go again. I can't do it anymore." Bubblegum broke out into another fit of sobs.

"Bonni?" Marceline's voice sounded confused. She released her grip on the Princess and floated above her for a moment, watching the pink girl below her. Her opalescent eyes grew wide as she watched Bubblegum's body fade in and out of their plane of existence as if she were an image on a screen.

"Marci? What's happening?!" Bubblegum shrieked. She sat up in the bed and reached for Marceline, but their hands only passed through each other. Princess Bubblegum's body faded into the air as if she were nothing more than smoke.

"Bonni! Wait! Don't go! Bonnibel!" Marceline clawed at the air, frantically grasping the space where Bubblegum was sitting. "No... no... what... the junk is happening...?"

Enranged, Marceline snatched her axe bass from beside the balcony door where she had left it and flew out into the night sky, heading towards a familiar old tree house to seek out two friends.


	2. Chapter 2 - Heroes

**Hi all! Ready for the next chapter? Not a lot of fluff or junk, unless you count fluffy Batceline, but we gotta get things moving! Where's Bubblegum? Also, I figured that if Marceline got noodles in "What Was Missing" she has some way to get back to her house, like a portal or something. Just roll with it. Feedback is definitely appreciated! Enjoy!**

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**Heroes**

"I don't know where she is, dude! Jake, relax, we're not gonna figure anything out if you freak out, man!" Finn shouted. Jake was pacing the treehouse madly, howling angry curses at the air. He was being unreasonable and flying off the handle quite quickly.

"You don't get it, dude! She was right there with me! Lady was right there and then she was gone! She just disappeared into thin air!" Jake flailed his arms around wildly, but in his frustration he was no good at describing anything, let alone shape shift into anything useful.

"Dude, then we gotta go on a quest! Let's go on a quest and find Lady for you, bro." Filled with excitement and determination, Finn stood up and grabbed his backpack and flame sword.

"We don't even know where Lady is, man." Jake protested, although he was the first to reach the door.

"Then we'll just look everywhere. Don't worry, bro. We'll find Lady and bring her home. Finn opened the door and came face to face with a haggard and angry looking vampire. "Woah! Marceline! What the toast?"

"Bubblegum... she's gone." Marceline answered in a raspy breath.

"I don't like this, dude," Jake started, "First Lady, now PB? Something weird is going on. You think Ice King has something to do with this?"

Finn shook his head, "No way, dude. This seems too smart for Ice King. That guy's a total butt, but all he knows how to do is kidnap princesses in the cheesiest ways possible. Remember when he lured Turtle Princess in a basket trap with a stack of books?"

"Oh yeah." Jake agreed. He shook his head and brought his attention back to the situation at hand, "Come on, Marceline. We're gonna go look for Lady and PB. You should come with us."

"Lady's missing too?" Marceline's eyebrows arched in surprise. Usually Princesses go missing, but not ranicorns. "You sure everything's cool with Flame Princess, Finn?"

Finn's face went blank for a moment before his eyes grew incredibly wide. "Oh. My. Glob... I... I don't know. We've gotta go... other Princesses might be in trouble too. Marceline, do you have any ideas?"

Marceline shook her head, "I thought about the Ice King too, but this isn't like him. Simon's still a simpleton under all that white hair, so he's out. Something like this has got to take some serious magic juice. Anything in the Enchiridion?"

Finn's expression dropped again, "No... it was destroyed by the Lich. I don't have even a piece of it."

"Glob it..." Marceline cursed. "Fine, we'll just head out, cause we're lumping not doing any good just by standing here." She stormed out of the tree house with and extra large Jake and Finn riding on his companion's back. She flew beside them, easily keeping pace.

She didn't care where they needed to go, as long as she could find Bubblegum. She was so close to closing the gap between them. The sweet taste of her lips still lingered on Marceline's memory, like cotton candy. Being away from her Princess for so long was already hard enough, but for her disappear like this in the middle of a crucial moment was unacceptable. Hearing the word 'unacceptable' in her head made Marceline think of the Earl Lemongrab, which made her giggle slightly. What a ridiculous thing the Princess created... She needed her back. Marceline needed Bubblegum in front of her where she could feel her presence, become intoxicated with her sweet candy scent and get lost in her colorful embrace. She bolted forward in the air, passing Finn and Jake as they raced beside her.

Looking back at her companions, Marceline registered a surprising look of determination on their faces. For once she connected with the boys. They had all lost something precious. It wasn't like what the Door Lord took... something else took someone from them, a person so valuable that they would go blindly into the wilds of Ooo to search for them.

They had crossed the peaks of the Sugar Mountains, just on the outskirts of the Candy Kingdom, through the blizzards of the Ice Kingdom, barely missing the Ice King's penguin lookouts. They were well past the Hazy Desert and had come across a valley that none of them had encountered before. A gigantic hedge stood as tall as a mountain that loomed so high that Jake felt dizzy just thinking about stretching above it.

"What do you think this is?" Finn wondered.

"Probably some old overgrown garden or whatever. I don't think..." Marceline's voice trailed off as she whipped her head in the direction of the wind.

"Marceline? What's wrong?" Jake was about to approach the vampire when he caught something in the air. "Lady!" He raced along the hedge, following the scent of Lady Ranicorn, which is to say, the scent of cherry blossoms and rain. Marceline was also racing behind Jake, flying low to the ground at incredible speed. Surprisingly enough, Finn managed to keep up. He wasn't able to pick up on the scent of others, but he knew they could and where they went, he'd need to follow. He wasn't even sure if FP was in trouble, but he'd be globbed if he didn't make the blind attempt to rescue her.

Marceline felt like a crazed animal. The familiar aroma of cotton candy that she knew so well was hanging faintly in the air. Bubblegum was here and she was going to find her. But something about the hedge felt wrong. It made the hairs on the back of Marceline's neck stand and for anything to do that to the Vampire Queen was quite a thing indeed.

They came to a break in the hedge that looked like an archway. The ground within the perimeter was covered in a low thick mist, making the place look incredibly sinister. Marceline felt rather comfortable with it, except for that nagging prickling feeling. There was weird magic at play and she wasn't sure how she should take it. It wasn't anything like what she knew in all of Ooo, the astral plane or the Nightosphere.

"In there?" Jake asked no one in particular.

"Yeah, dude. Totes. Come on, the Princesses need our help." Finn took the first step forward with Marceline hovering above them and Jake at his side. He held his sword out in front of him as a defense mechanism.

The inital entry beyond the hedge was like a long hallway. At first it seemed as if it was a hedge maze, but on closer inspection, the walls were actually made of stone covered in overgrowth. In the distance, beyond the maze, was a towering pyramid. The whole place felt ominous and Marceline wondered if the location was actually older than she was. There weren't many things left after the Mushroom War, but that wasn't to say that everything was gone.

"Hey."

Jake, Finn and Marceline stopped in their tracks and looked at each other. "Was that you, bro?" Finn asked.

Jake shook his head, a look of worry playing across his jowled face. "Now way, dude. I don't think it was Marceline either. The voice was a few octaves too low for her."

"Crabapples, what the junk was it then?" Marceline snapped.

"Hey, down here." The voice said again. The three adventurers looked down to see a large pinkish purple silhouette below their feet. "Hey Jake."

"Woah! Prismo!" Jake answered with glee. "What are you doing here, man?"

"Oh, y'know... just hanging around wherever." The silhouette answered. "Actually, I kinda followed this weird dude over here. He stepped on my face when I asked him what's up. Totally weird green guy in a yellow outfit. He was a jerk."

Finn and Jake turned to each other in surprise, "Magic Man!" they cried in unison.

"Magic Man?" Marceline tilted her head slightly. She knew a lot about Ooo, but she had never encountered this 'Magic Man.'

"Yeah, man, he's a real patoot. One time, he turned me into a foot. Another time he almost killed Jake."

Jake shook his head, "Yeah, it wasn't cool. But Finn was an awesome foot."

"Shut the junk up, man." Finn turned to Prismo on the ground, "Hey Prismo, a bunch our friends are missing. Do you think Magic Man is behind this?"

The silhouette thought quietly for a moment, then answered, "Yeah, probably. I was taking a break from the multiverse gateway 'cause the Cosmic Owl was all 'You spend way too much time here' so I was gonna hang around this ruined maze and explore it. Doesn't take long, though. At least not when I can cover the whole thing. Anyways, after that jerk appeared, I heard other voices around the maze. But you can't see them. Their voices always come from a thick cloud of fog that sits in one place."

"We gotta find those fog places, guys." Marceline announced, her voice full of conviction. Bonnibel was somewhere in this maze and she was determined to find her and restore the balance in her life.

"Any ideas where the first one is, Prismo?" Jake asked, looking down at his buddy.

"Yeah, follow the wall and make a left turn at the first opening, then a right at the next and a left at the next. There's a bank of blue fog sitting there. It's crying, so be careful what you say to it. It's kinda sensitive."

Jake chuckled a little, "Sounds like Ghost Princess. Cool, man. We gotta hurry, you coming?"

"I'll catch up when I can. Cosmic Owl told me to hang out here and wait for him. He wanted to split a pizza."

"Glob, that sounds good right now..." Marceline muttered. She hadn't eaten in quite some time, the tomato sauce and pepperoni would've done great to tide her over, even if it gave her weird dreams. She wasn't planning on sleeping anytime soon, at least not until Bubblegum was safe in her arms again. The night was ending soon and if she didn't find something to eat she wouldn't have the energy to shapeshift or open a portal to her home to get something to cover herself with from the sun. "Finn, you got an apple or anything in your bag?"

Finn took off his backpack and rummaged through it. "Um…sandwich… can of beans.. gems… here's a cursed necklace… oh!" Finn produced a handful of strawberries in a cardboard box. "All yours, Marceline."

"Thank glob…" Marceline sighed as she took the box from Finn. She promptly drained every trace of red from the berries, feeling her hunger subside. "All right, I'll be back, I promise. The sun's gonna be up and I need my hat or an umbrella. Otherwise I'm toast."

"No can do, yo." Prismo piped in. He was still there on the ground. He moved around along the walls until he was towering above them. "The place has got a spell on it. No portals out, no portals in. I actually had to walk here."

Finn raised an eyebrow, "You can walk?"

"Ugh, that's not important right now, Finn. The sun's going to be up soon and I need to make sure I don't become charcoal. I'm not leaving this place without Bonni." Marceline snapped. She clenched her fists in frustration. Usually her vampire abilities and nature were totally awesome, but it was during times like that that she felt it was nothing more than a hindrance.

As if it weren't a thing, Jake shrugged, "Why don't you just make yourself small and ride in Finn's backpack until the sun goes down again? If we find shady places, you can come out and stretch. My bro won't mind carrying you."

"Yeah!" Finn agreed excitedly. He opened up his backpack and kneeled beside it in front of Marceline, "Your chariot awaits, milady."

The vampire hesitated, considering the option for several reasons. One, she would be in their care, leaving her relatively vulnerable. She hated that. Two, it meant that these two dimwits had come up with an idea that she hadn't. They had good hearts and good intentions, but it did hurt her pride a little to think that they were thinking clearly and she wasn't. Third, Finn's offer just sounded too weird. Marceline wasn't a dainty princess to be addressed with words like 'milady.' She was the Supreme Ruler of Terror, the Queen of Vampires, Mistress of the Night and all that junk. Definitely too cool to be referred to as 'milady' and escorted around in a backpack. But she sighed defeatedly. If she couldn't get out of the maze with a portal, then the human boy's offer was probably the best solution at this time.

She quickly shifted her body until it shrank, leaving her in the form of a fluffy black bat. Marceline flapped her little wings and buried herself in Finn's backpack, then poked her head out. "Fine, don't shake me too much, though...and if you ever call me 'milady' again, I'm going to break my rule and drink your blood instead of a strawberry next time." The threat was empty, but she made it convincing enough that Jake cringed in evident fear.

Finn only chuckled. He knew that Marceline was mostly bark, not so much bite, especially when she was in tiny, cute bat form. "Hahaha, sure thing, Marceline. Ready to go, Jake?"

"Yeah, dude. See you later, Prismo. Holla if you see us down the road again, man." Jake said to the silhouette.

"Totes." Prismo answered. He was still waving at them as the continued down the pathway, before they turned in the direction he had instructed them in earlier. At that moment, the Cosmic Owl landed beside Prismo on the ground, setting down a box of pizza. "Oh, hey dude."

The Owl made some ruffling and hoot noises before glancing down the pathway. Prismo took a piece of pizza and was already munching away on it. "Oh yeah, it was that kid Finn again and the dog. They got a vampire with them too." More hoots came from the Cosmic Owl. "Hahaha, for sure, man. They totally have what it takes. That Magic Man's game is gonna bust when they get through with this maze."


	3. Chapter 3 - The First Rescue

**Hey all! Thanks for following "Traces of You" and for the reviews! Changed the rating to M 'cause it's gonna get to that point eventually. May as well do it now.**

**Got a little Ice King lameness in this for ya'll. Hope you enjoy it!**

****Adventure Time Characters are not owned by me! Just playing with them for the sake of a fic!****

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**The First Rescue**

Finn's backpack was pretty dark. Which was to be expected since he kept it closed so no sunlight would break through and burn Marceline. Out of curiosity, she rummaged through the things in his backpack. There was food and gems, little trinkets and a book. She looked at the title, "_Mind Games by Jay T. Doggzone" _Marceline peeled the book open and started somewhere between chapters five and six.

After a few minutes, an unrestrained laughter echoed from Finn's backpack. Finn and Jake stopped and looked the green bag curiously. "Marceline? Are you okay?" Finn asked of his green backpack.

"Totes. What the lump is this book, man? It's like the world's collection of the worst advice ever. If I ever tried anything like this on Bonni, she'd slap me for sure!" More laughter followed.

"You're still reading that garbage, Finn? I thought I told you it was worthless." Jake insisted. Finn simply gritted his teeth as his face turned red.

"I forgot it was in there, okay?!" he argued. "It's not like I really use it or anything. I gotta have something to sit on when the grass is wet, since I don't have the Enchiridion. I missed the weight… of the book… in my bag."

Marceline and Jake howled with laughter. "Sure, sure, man. Whatever you say." She and Jake poorly stifled their continued hysterics as Finn and Jake rounded another corner. They were suddenly overpowered with the sound of someone else making obnoxious noises. Down the path, a swirling blue fog was sobbing wildly. At least, it sounded like sobbing and whining. All at once. It had the most atrocious echo and the ground was peppered with water droplets, like it had rained all around the low hanging cloud.

As they approached the cloud, the sobbing got louder and more erratic. Marceline poked her head out of the bag, just enough to see the cloud from over Jake's shoulder. The sun was luckily behind the maze wall, causing a nice bit of shade where they were standing.

"What do you think is in there?" Finn asked.

"It's gotta be Ghost Princess. Look, the cloud is the same color she is." Jake pointed out. He was somewhat right. The fog was a translucent blue, but it's crying was beyond anything they heard out of Ghost Princess before.

Shifting back into her humanoid form in the shade, Marceline floated beside Finn and Jake. "It's just fog. Let's see if a little wind will help." She took a deep breath, which for a vampire, was quite an effort, then exhaled so greatly that the fog blew away like a powerful wind had passed through it. Behind the fog was not what they were expecting.

A childishly excited voice shouted with glee at their appearance. Although it seemed childish in its response, the voice was clearly coated with age. "Finn! Jake! Marceline! You're here to rescue me!" The Ice King cheered happily. "Oh man, I knew it. You guys are the best friends ever!" Marceline, Finn and Jake all exchanged a glance then turned back the way they came. "Wait! Come back! Don't leave me here! It's so lonely!" The Ice King's wails started up again and echoed down the path.

Marceline sighed. "Ugh… he's so… let's get him out, guys. He's not a part of this and we'll have to listen to this noise echo if we don't do something."

Finn scowled, "But he's a bad dude, Marceline. We should just leave him. He'll find a way out eventually, but it will at least give us a head start back home."

She knew Finn was right. The Ice King was a butt, a creeper and one of her oldest friends. He was the one who gave her Hambo, As much as he weirded everyone out, she couldn't just leave him.

"Nah, he's not that bad. Look, he's just lonely." She approached the Ice King and inspected his restraints. He wasn't really being held down with anything, but there was clearly a defined barrier keeping him stationary. The Ice King looked pitiful. He managed to make his beady black eyes so sad that it reminded Marceline of a puppy. Normally she didn't give half a buzz, but considering this was Simon… at least somewhere inside there, she couldn't just walk away.

Finn groaned. He hated submitting and letting the Ice King win. Although Finn wasn't sure if this was considered winning or not and he knew there was some sort of weird connection with the Ice King and Marceline, so he grudgingly obliged. "All right, Ice King.. how do we get you out?"

"Really? You'll help me?! I promise we'll be the best buds ever! You'll be my bosom buddies!" the Ice King exclaimed gleefully. The barrier started to thin and the Ice King's long nose pushed passed the area as he jumped around.

"No… no, don't say that. That's creepy." Jake scoffed. "We are NOT bosom buddies_."_

Marceline watched as the Ice King's nose no longer passed through the barrier. She suddenly got an idea and held up her hand, "Hold on, Jake. Hey Ice King… we're friends right? Remember when we totally jammed together at my place? You play the drums like a total rock star."

Ice King's face lit up again. "Really? You… like it when I play the drums?"

"Yeah, man. We should totes jam together again. I've been working on some new beats, I bet you'd be a hit with the ladies if you play with me sometime." Marceline said rather convincingly. Jake and Finn looked utterly confused. Everyone knew that the Ice King was just too weird for anyone, but now Marceline, the best bass player and singer in all of Ooo, was asking the creepy king to play songs with her.

Finn leaned close to Marceline, "Hey, what are you doing, man? You'll never get rid of him that way."

"Look," the vampire stretched out her hand and pointed at the barrier. The Ice King was almost completely unfettered by the barrier. "Whenever he thinks we're his friends, the barrier gets weaker. It's not his wall… it's ours. We literally have to break down our walls against the Ice King and… I guess let him in. Or out. Or whatever."

The human boy's mouth dropped. Having no giant monster or anything to fight… left him feeling a bit disappointed. "Okay, Ice King," Finn said in a warning tone, "You can hang with us and be our bud… but you gotta promise to not hurt the Princesses or kidnap them or do anything creepy. Got it?"

The Ice King gave Finn's offer a serious thought. He rubbed his beard where a chin should be and made quite the contemplative face. After what seemed like an hour, though it was only a minute or two, the Ice King enthusiastically nodded. "Does that mean I get to hang out with you starting now?"

Jake, Marceline and Finn exchanged looks again, really hoping someone would say no, but none did. Jake sighed, "Fine… but like Finn said, you gotta be normal and keep your hands to yourself."

With an enormous grin, the Ice King raised his hands to reveal that he had no ill intentions. He outstretched his arms to them, beaming from ear to ear. "Can I get one of these?"

They hesitated. Then Marceline raised her arms, just as she had done before as a child, though it was much different then. She was young, vulnerable and lost in a world that was shattered. He had been a friend to her, a sort of half-sane caretaker and in a way, she felt like she would always be indebted to him for his kindness. The Ice King, once Simon Petrikov, stepped forward out of the barrier, arms stretched out towards the Vampire Queen. He squeaked happily as they met halfway in a hug, which she quickly broke before it got too awkward. Let the Ice King linger too long and he gets weird ideas. Finn and Jake flanked either side of the Ice King and gave him a pat on the back.

"Great… let's move on to the next area. I want to find Bubblegum and make sure she's okay." Before Ice King could say anything, Marceline whipped around and glared at him, "Don't you _dare_ touch Bonnibel. She's spoken for." Ice King merely nodded, looking confused, but Marceline was satisfied that she had laid claim to what would be her territory.

With the Ice King completely free, Marceline twisted her body into the fuzzy little black bat and wiggled her way back into Finn's backpack. They turned to head down another pathway from where they came, the Ice King trailed behind them with his beard flapping like wings, hoping to find another cloud with a Princess in it instead of a weirdo. It wasn't long before Jake, Finn and Marceline regretted saving the Ice King as he tried to entertain his new friends with cover performances of Marceline's own songs, raps about Princesses and stories about Gunter the Penguin.

Finn groaned at the idea that the Ice King was only the first person they rescued. _This… is definitely going to be a long quest…_


	4. Chapter 4 - Unexpected Companion

**Here we go again! This is a short one, mostly for comedy 'cause I couldn't NOT have LSP in on this. Enjoy!**

****Again, I don't own AT characters, I'm just borrowing them. kthxbai****

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**Unexpected Companion**

The next fog gathering they found was quite a ways from where they found the Ice King. They had gotten completely turned around, confused and lost, taking random turns anywhere they could just to keep moving. When they came across this new patch of fog, they stopped in their tracks. But what they found was not at all what they imagined to find. A large fluffy green cloud had seemed to take on a life and form of its own and was matching itself toe to toe with Muscle Princess. The large Princess flexed her overly sized muscles and the cloud followed suit. In surprise at being matched, the Princess adjusted her pose and flexed again, only to find that the cloud would do the same. It didn't seem like she was captured, but she was certainly captivated.

"Hey Princess!" Finn shouted at her. Muscle Princess didn't even turn her head to see the boy. "Hey! Over here!" He continued to shout and jump up and down, flailing his arms to get her attention. Marceline poked her head out of Finn's pack to steady herself as his jumping around made her dizzy inside. Ice King floated behind them, ogling Muscle Princess, but kept his distance in an honest attempt to honor his promise to Finn and Jake.

Jake pushed past Finn and gave a haughty chuckle. "Nah, bro. Check this out. I got it." Finn stopped jumping, much to Marceline's approval.

"I told you not to shake me too much, Finn!" she scolded. He sheepishly apologized before turning back to Jake.

The yellow dog had grown himself to stand taller than Muscle Princess and the cloud. He blew into his thumb which caused his arms to puff up into ridiculously enormous muscles. In fact, by the time he was done adjusting his form, he was so beefed up that his head was three times smaller than his body. Together with Muscle Princess, they posed in front of the cloud, out-flexing the cloud several times. It wasn't long before the cloud admitted defeat, releasing its grasp of Muscle Princess's pride. She clapped happily and wordlessly flexed appreciation to Jake. Jake grunted and flexed back, a strange but friendly conversation ensued between the two of them with just the flexing of true and imitated muscles.

Jake shrunk back to his normal size and returned to the others, whistling proudly. Finn threw his hand up in the air and Jake met it with his in a loud high-five. "Yeah, man! That was awesome! How'd you know what to do?"

"It was easy, dude. Intense body builders like Muscle Princess have to prove themselves by showing off their muscles. I just had to help her put the cloud in its place." Jake said proudly. Finn looked over at Muscle Princess as she headed down another pathway. "Oh don't worry about her, Finn. She said she was fine going home on her own."

"Wait, you got all that out of a few flexes? Dude, that's totally math!" Finn exclaimed excitedly. Jake beamed proudly.

Marceline tucked herself back into the bag, shaking her head and mumbling about how she'd never seen anything so ridiculous in all her centuries of living.

The maze felt like it continued on for forever. They hoped with every turn they would find someone, but all they would find is another pathway, another wall, another corner. Even the Ice King had run out of energy and was just following along silently, albeit grinning from ear to ear since he was 'hanging with his new buds.' Marceline even took a little nap from within Finn's backpack. But they weren't making very good time. Fortunately for Marceline, the sun was just beginning to set when they came across the next Princess. She was getting tired of being tossed around in Finn's backpack.

Huddled in a dead end, Lumpy Space Princess was building a hobo fire in an empty bean can. "Oh, hey you guys." She looked up at them as they approached. "Are you, like, here for the party too? How'd you losers get invited?"

Finn looked around, "Uh.. party? Whatevs, LSP. Don't you need rescuing or something?"

She floated over to Finn, all purple cloud and haughty, "Uh, no! Like, what the lump are you thinking? I totally saw Muscle Princess and Bubblegum over here and was like, 'Oh my glob, they are NOT going to a party with out me. But then I got hungry and I can't find the buffet line!" LSP through her arms up in frustration and turned around to her bean can fire.

"So... you don't need to be rescued..?" Jake asked.

"No!" LSP insisted, "Now beat it before you ruin my image. I gotta hang around all the cool people so when Brad gets here, he'll be all like, 'Hey LSP' and I'll be like 'Oh, it's just you, Brad, whatevs.' I gotta make him WANT ME!"

Marceline rolled her eyes from within the backpack. They needed to find a way to shut this ridiculous Princess up so they could hurry up and find _her_ Princess. Even Ice King was looking uncomfortable... LSP wasn't one of his favorites.

"Um, there's no one here." Finn pointed out, "Listen, LSP, this place is dangerous. There's something weird here and junk, so we'll totally take you to the party if you just come with us for awhile."

The purple Princess rolled her eyes, "You mean I have to be seen with you losers?! FINE! But don't think that you can get up on these lumps. And," she continued, wagging a finger at Finn, "I am totally gonna ditch you un-cool smooth losers once Brad shows up." LSP picked up her hobo bag (which was just a plastic bag with a few crackers in it) and looped it into her arm like a purse.

"Dude," Jake whispered into Finn's ear. Marceline could hear him clearly from within the backpack, "I think all this time in the wilderness made LSP severely cray-cray. Does she even know that there's like, nothing in her bag?"

Ahead of them, LSP floated onward, swaying her lower half like a pair of hips. She stopped and turned to Finn, Jake and the Ice King, not knowing that Marceline was very well hidden. "Stop looking at my lumps, you guys! You had your chance!"

The boys cringed simultaneously. "When we get back, you guys can have dibs on that. Cause you're my homies." Ice King said cautiously to the boys.

"Shut up, Ice King." Came the unanimous reply.

Jake's ears suddenly perked up at a train of thought he was riding. "Hey, LSP, since you were just hanging and junk, have you seem the other princesses and Lady?"

LSP thought to herself for a moment, then answered "Oh yeah, Flame Princess is like, on this island on a lake, but I didn't bring my bikini so I was like, 'Nah girl, that's all you.' And like, Bubblegum was totes talking to a cloud or something. Probably someone from the Cloud Kingdom. I dunno. And, uhh, Lady was all, just hanging out in one place. That's why I ditched them. They were like, being totally lame."

"How far are they?" Finn asked. He felt relieved that they wouldn't be doing this for much longer. He was getting pretty hungry and waffles sounded pretty good right now.

"Oh, um... Yeah, like Bubblegum's at that pyramid building thing. And Flame Princess is like, in this tower thing or whatever. It's on an island, but there weren't any hot guys serving drinks, so it's totally lame."

"What about Lady?!" Jake shouted. He was getting worked up and excited, even his tail was violently swinging back and forth.

"Oh yeah, Lady's all in this cage and stuff and there's a giant three armed cyclops guarding her."

"What?!" Jake nearly fell back on his hindquarters. "Come on, you guys, we gotta go save Lady before that thing eats her!"

"But what about FP? Dude, if she's on an island, she can't get out, she'll get extinguished! That water will kill her!" Finn argued.

Marceline snaked herself out if Finn's backpack, "I'm going to find Bubblegum. Before some Cloud Kingdom bozo tries something funny, or whatever."

LSP shrieked, "Ohmiglob, she's here too?! Maybe this party isn't so lame now!" LSP grinned, taking Marceline's presence into account.

"Let's split up. I'll go find FP. Jake, you go after Lady. Marceline will find Peebles. It's dark enough now, you'll be ok, right Marceline?"

The vampire floated over to Finn and patted his head, "I'll be fine. Thanks, kid. We'll meet outside of the maze before sunrise."

Jake and Finn bumped fists, "Let's do this, bro."

They took off in three different directions, Jake towards the sky, stretching as high as he could so he could see over the walls. Marceline headed to the north, in the direction of the pyramid, while Finn headed towards the west, assuming that's where the lake may be. Ice King and LSP were left behind, staring into the empty space around them.

"Ugh! I'm not hanging around here! I'm going with the band!" LSP exclaimed, floating along the path Marceline had taken. She was just in view of LSP. The mouthy purple cloud picked up what little speed she could to try and catch up to the vampire.

"Finn? Jake?" Ice King looked around painfully. He didn't know which way to go. "Oh! My ice magic can help Finn freeze the lake! Maybe I'll get a kiss from Flame Princess. She's totally hot." He giggled and clapped his hands, then sped off after Finn.


	5. Chapter 5 - A Faint Memory

**Boom! Gumball and Marshall Lee?! Welcome aboard, boys! Bet you readers were wondering what happened with Bubblegum while the others are running around this maze, right? If you weren't, well now you get to know anyways. Hope you like this one. It's way longer. Bear with me if you're waiting for the smut, it'll happen, I promise.**

****AT characters? Not mine. Borrowed for this fic****

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**A Faint Memory**

Bubblegum's heart was racing so fast she thought it would burst. She had waited a painful two years since she stupidly cast Marceline aside. Two years of pent up desire, anger, frustration and emotions all had finally overwhelmed her and brought the Candy Princess to tears in her bedroom. That's when she appeared; that rude, laid back, ancient, beautiful woman with raven black hair and chilled skin like stone. Marceline had just miraculously appeared in front of Bubblegum, holding her hands away from her face and softly reassuring the saddened Princess. Bubblegum let loose with a barrage of apologies, slightly raising her body off the bed to just brush against the vampire. She wanted her. Bubblegum needed her. She needed her to understand that she was sorry, that she had been wrong and that she was ready to give up anything to just have the Vampire Queen near her again.

Then she kissed the Princess. The sensation was like lightning, igniting everything within Bubblegum. It was as if every molecule in her body felt everything, just from Marceline's lips. She tasted like strawberries, she smelled of spices; Bubblegum felt like she was drowning in pleasure. Her consciousness was fading, her mind reaching a climax her body would never know. But then it stopped. It stopped so abruptly that Bubblegum nearly choked on her breath.

"Bonni?" Marceline's voice was lost, confused. Something felt wrong. Bubblegum felt empty, as if she were nothing. Marceline's eyes were looking right through her. She clawed at the air desperately to hold onto Marceline's hands. Those hands that she knew so well and they knew her. She cried out for Marceline, making every attempt to grasp her, but finding her hands to merely pass through the vampire's as if she were water. _No... I'm not Ghost Princess, I'm Princess Bonnibel Bubblegum, glob it! What in the name of science is going on here?!_ It was far too late. That single moment which lasted no longer than a blink was gone and so was Marceline. Though more appropriately, she, Bonnibel, was gone.

The familiar pink colored bedroom was no where in sight, including the splash of black and grey that was Marceline. _Marceline? Who... It feels like something from a dream._ Bonnibel was still reaching out into the air for her. She lowered her arms and tried to take in her surroundings. It was completely unfamiliar. The air was strangely still. She was outdoors, yet she felt confined as if she were in a room. But something felt severely amiss. There was an emptiness in Bonnibel's heart that she couldn't explain, which irked her because science explains everything.

"Hey Bonnibel." The voice was low and slightly seductive. Bubblegum spun on her heels and came face to face with grey features and striking yellow eyes. Short, ragged black hair framed an angular face and tiny fangs poked out of a playful smile. She still felt confused, although this person floating in front of her felt vaguely familiar. He was floating off the ground, a lithe young man with a red guitar shaped like an halberd axe strapped to his back. He was wearing tight jeans and black cowboy boots with a flannel red shirt. "What's with that face? It's me, Marshall Lee. Come on, I'm not gonna fall for that 'I don't remember you' junk." Before she could answer, the grey boy was yanked away from her by his collar.

"Marshall!" Another voice scolded him. "You mustn't frighten her. Glob, she looks as pale as the Ice Queen!" A young man around Bubblegum's age was grasping Marshall by the collar. His skin was colored pink, just like hers, with bubblegum hair and a tiny crown on his head. He wore a pink suit with and pale pink shirt and bright purple tie. Even his shoes were a well polished purple shade. He turned to her, tossing Marshall to the side in the air. "Bonnibel, are you all right? I apologize for Marshall's behavior. He doesn't understand propriety and decency, even for the Vampire King."

"Oh...I-I'm fine," she answered nervously. "Sorry, you are...?"

"My apologies," the pink man said as he bowed at the waist, taking her hand, "Prince Gumball of the Candy Kingdom here in Aaa. Don't you remember, Bonnibel? We're practically cousins. Well, very long distant, almost not related, but completely related." He made no sense, but Bubblegum found his mannerisms endearing. It felt like she knew him. _Did we meet as children? Strange, you would think that I would remember another Candy royal._ Although she said this to herself, she still felt that Gumball was someone she knew.

"Sorry, boys," she began, "My head is kind of fizzed out. What am I doing here?"

Marshall and Gumball exchanged a look then both turned to her in unison. "You...were...coming...with me to the castle!" Marshall exclaimed suddenly. He hovered in close to her, taking in her candy scent and floated behind her. "You're so much sweeter than Gumball..." He caught himself almost hissing at something. Vampires were territorial creatures and it was clear that Bonnibel had been marked, at some point, by a vampire.

Bubblegum unconsciously covered her neck with one hand as Marshall passed close to her. His actions were nostalgic and she had the feeling like something was going to bite at her neck. It made her ache slightly, with feelings she couldn't describe. _Why can't I remember anything? Marshall makes me feel strange...do I like him? How could I forget something like that? He's kind of...sexy, in a way. I deduct that a conversation with Gumball might put things right. I'm sure he knows what's going on. _She watched Marshall in her peripheral line, floating lazily back as forth between Gumball and herself. He was singing some sort of creepy love song in a low voice and strumming on his halberd guitar while floating on his back.

They arrived at the Candy Castle within the hour. Bubblegum almost sighed in relief at the familiar setting of home, as if she had always known this Candy Kingdom to be one just like hers. Gumball ordered Peppermint Maid to bring coffee and apples to his bedroom where he would entertain Bubblegum and Marshall. Peppermint Maid glared disapprovingly at Marshall as the Vampire King floated above her head with a toothy smirk.

Once inside Gumball's royal chambers, they seated themselves at a small round table. Bubblegum sat across from her Princely counterpart while Marshall hovered chairless between them. Peppermint Maid came through the door with a tray of coffee, sugar and cream, six apples and a tiny plate of muffins. Gumball beamed proudly, "Please, help yourself, Bonnibel. I just baked these muffins this morning."

Bubblegum's eyebrows crept upwards on her forehead, "You bake? I haven't considered it previously but perhaps baking is an equally scientific endeavor. I will have to apply it to my studies when I return to Ooo." She watched as Marshall snatched an apple and proceeded to drain the fruit of all its color. A strange thought and vague memory occurred to her. She imagined that she had seen someone, perhaps Marshall himself, drain color from a strawberry. "Are apples your favorite, Marshall? Don't you like strawberries?" She asked in an attempt to verify the bits of her memory.

"No way, babe," he answered with a fanged scowl, "They give me nightmares." He traded the grey apple in his hand for a fully colored one. "But I'll enjoy it if that's how your pink tastes."

Color raced to Bubblegum's face, turning her a darker shade of pink. Marshall eyed her hungrily, but took it out on the apple in his hand. Brushing off the vampire's obvious advances, she turned back to Gumball. He busily poured milk and sugar into his coffee, then gently blew on the surface to cool it. "So... Tell me why I was coming over here."

"Why, it's because you wanted to spend time with me and Marshall." Gumball stated.

It still didn't make sense to her. Bubblegum had no recollection of making plans to leave Ooo. She had quite the busy schedule and diplomatic visits had not been on her itinerary for some time. Marshall and Gumball were hiding something and it was not that difficult to detect. She fixed her own cup of coffee, black with just a bit of sugar, and sipped it. Looking over the edge of the cup, she eyed Gumball. "I'm no idiot, Prince Gumball. Tell me the real reason why I'm here. I need to return to _my_ Candy Kingdom."

Marshall stopped mid-drain and shared a glance with Gumball who had set down his coffee. Gumball sighed and steepled his fingertips together. "I suppose you'll relax when you understand everything. We're not cousins. I'm a version of you."

Bubblegum opened her mouth to say something, then closed it. After a moment, she made another attempt to say something but immediately closed it. Marshall stifled a laugh at her supposed impression of a fish.

"You're in Aaa. It sits parallel to Ooo on the dimensional plane. Sometimes, which I'm sure you understand, things occur that cause connections through parallel worlds. Now, I had to research this quite extensively. I can't be quite sure what happened, but I was baking a few days ago when my soufflé exploded. All that was left were these very beautiful iridescent sprinkles. Well, I just had to make _something_ with them."

"Even I liked those doughnuts! I don't even eat real food. Seriously, they made me feel 500 years younger!" Marshall interrupted. Gumball shot him a disapproving look for the interruption.

Gumball cleared his throat and continued. "Yes, I made doughnuts with them. Round, hot, melty doughnuts. So soft and delicate that they oozed in your mouth. I made round doughnuts, long doughnuts, tiny spherical doughnuts. The small ones were the favorites, of course. They fit perfectly in your mouth."

Bubblegum's face colored an even deeper shade of pink than earlier at Gumball's description. She was unsure if it was the coffee or the atmosphere, but it felt to her that there was double meaning in his words. "I understand the doughnuts were delicious, but what does that have to do with my being here."

"Yes, of course, Princess," Gumball said with a smile. "After thorough research, it appears that the combination of ingredients, when heated by flames from Flame Prince, caused a reaction in my soufflé that turned it into a pile of chronoton particles. These particles, while earthly delicious on doughnuts, have a time altering side effect. A strange green man in a yellow suit and hat stole some from my kitchen. I have no idea what he did with them, but with his mysterious ability, the consumption of the doughnuts within myself allowed me to see into your world. I couldn't be sure what point of time I was looking into. I'm still researching, but I can tell you that you will be returning to Ooo. Someone from your world will pull you back."

A feeling of relief settled in Bubblegum's stomach. She would at least be going home at some point, but she wasn't sure when. She thought of her friends back home; Finn and Jake with Beemo in their tree house, Lady, Peppermint Butler, the other Princesses, Tree Trunks, Cinnamon Bun... She started to actually miss them all. But a nagging feeling sat in the back of her heart like she had forgotten something important. Try as she might, it wouldn't come to her. "Well, in the meantime, what do we do until then?"

Gumball put his hand to his chin and hummed in thought. "We could… hold a party in your honor! Yes, I would enjoy showing you the wonders of the Candy Kingdom!"

Bubblegum narrowed her eyes, unamused, "Gumball, everything looks exactly like _my_ Candy Kingdom. Surely there couldn't be anything here that I wouldn't have seen at home."

Marshall chuckled, "Relax, Princess, Aaa is like, totally different from Ooo. Gumball explained it to me. Like, who are your closest friends?"

"Well… there's Finn the Human and Jake the Dog… oh, and Lumpy Space Princess." She answered.

"Then you probably want to meet Fionna the Human and Cake the Cat. We can call up Lumpy Space Prince, but he's kind of annoying." Marshall answered with a scowl.

"He's not that bad, Marshall. Besides, LSP and I have been friends for years. I think he's just jealous of you." Gumball grinned as he stood up from the chair.

"Jealous of me? Yeah… well, he should be. I'm way cooler than he is." Marshall said, crossing his arms over his chest. He winked at Bubblegum, indicating his feigned distaste of LSP.

"What about you, Marshall? Do you think there's someone in Ooo who's just like you?" Bubblegum asked in a sugary voice. Marshall's advances had aggravated her, but at the same time, she found him slightly endearing and just a bit adorable in his attempts.

"Doubt it. There's only one awesome Marshall Lee and that's me. But if there was, she'd totally be rockin' with a hot bod and all these awesome powers. Oh, and she'd be a vampire so she'd have this long ton–" he rambled with a toothy grin. Gumball's hand moved so quickly, even Marshall didn't notice it as it covered his mouth. He struggled behind Gumball's sugary palm as the Candy Prince dragged him to the other side of the room.

"Excuse us a moment, Princess." Gumball smiled cooly. Once on the safe confines of the opposite end of the bedroom, the Prince pulled Marshall close to him, draping his arm across the vampire's shoulders and whispered, "Marshall! What did I say earlier about that other vampire? The Princess _can't_ know about her. Those visions I saw, they're bad, man. Real bad. The Princess was crying and that other vampire, I think she's gonna eat Bonnibel! I don't know if she drinks color like you do!"

A worried look shaped Marshall's face in a frown. Then slowly, his lips curled upwards in a grin and he narrowed his eyes at Gumball. "You know… I kinda like it when you're aggressive like this."

"Please keep it cool while she's here, Marshall." Gumball sighed as he broke away from Marshall. The vampire floated there wordlessly as Gumball returned to Bubblegum, mumbling to himself. Marshall hovered in place for a moment before following Gumball across the room.

"Is everything all right?" Bubblegum asked curiously.

"Just fine, Princess." Gumball answered with a bright smile. "Come, we will hold a grand party to welcome you to Aaa and the Candy Kingdom. Oh, but we'll just introduce you as my cousin. I think it will be a little difficult to explain to some of the candy people about the chronoton particles. I have a hard enough time grasping it myself."

"It's really not that difficult, Prince Gumball." She answered. "Essentially, chronoton particles are the atomic level elements of time. They are part of what causes aging and growth. Being able to harness those things could open up the possibility of time travel or, as I have done, travel between parallel worlds."

Gumball's face twisted up in confusion. Then he snapped back to his usual smile and nodded, not quite understanding what she was rambling about but decided that it would be best not to question her further.

The ballroom of the Candy Castle was filled with many candy people and different citizens from all over Aaa. Bubblegum was introduced as Prince Gumball's cousin, Duchess Bonnibel Bubblegum from the Sugar Empire across the ocean. While this was a complete and utter fabricated story, it was enough to convince the attendants that she was no one suspicious. She met Gumball's resident heroine, Fionna the Human Girl and her best friend, Cake the Cat. Marshall sang a few creepy love songs while strumming on his axe bass. The exceptionally long and regal looking Lord Monochromicorn had poked his head in at one point and brought in Lumpy Space Prince, Wildberry Prince and Turtle Prince. Peppermint Maid and Tree Stump served warm chocolate cakes. Through all this, Bubblegum missed her friends back in Ooo. Everyone reminded her of them. She decided, for the time being, until she was able to return to Ooo, the company of the people of Aaa was at least whole heartedly honest, warm and friendly. But somewhere, sitting the pit of her stomach like a nagging ache, she continued to feel like something was missing, something very important was forgotten. The only time it subsided when Marshall was near. For the next few days, as a guest of Prince Gumball, Princess Bubblegum explored the lands of Aaa with Gumball, Marshall, Fionna and Cake at her side.

It had been well over the three days that Gumball had predicted when Bubblegum would return home. His calculations had been off, though she couldn't really fault him for it as it wasn't part of his expertise. She would quickly set to work on finding her own way back, but the basement she had known in her castle to be her laboratory was Gumball's personal kitchen in this world. She felt completely out of her element, but her new friends spared not expense in their efforts to make her feel comfortable and welcome.

On this particular day, she was casually reading a book on Aaa history on the roof of Fionna and Cake's treehouse. She had integrated herself so well that Aaa was beginning to feel a bit like home, just slightly backwards. Marshall quietly strummed on his bass under an umbrella attached to a boat while Fionna excitedly retold a tale of adventuring and sword fights to Gumball.

Marshall floated close to Bubblegum and looked over her shoulder. "What'cha reading, Princess?" he hissed softly.

Bubblegum jumped slightly in surprised. She came face to face with Marshall, her face reddening with his closeness. "I.. uh.." _Glob it! Why is he so close? He smells like spices and... well I suppose if twilight had a scent, this would be it... it's so familiar. _"It's a book on your land's history. It's very similar to Ooo."

"You look kinda sad whenever you mention Ooo. Do you miss it?"

"Of course I do. My people must be suffering without me, candy people are very sensitive, you know. I also keep thinking of my friends, Finn and Jake.. and Lady.. and LSP... Stuff happens in Ooo all the time. What if the Ice King is causing trouble again? Or, in my absence, the Earl of Lemongrab is trying to weasel in. Or the Duke of Nuts! Ugh, I hate that guy!" She shook her fist in anger and frustration, then sighed defeatedly. "Sorry, Marshall. I don't mean to unload on you."

"Nah, it's cool, BB." He grinned.

"BB?" she wondered aloud.

"Bonnibel Bubblegum. BB. Duh."

"Oh." _Finn always called me PB. I wonder what that kid's doing. Is he looking for me? He's so attached, I hope he's doing ok. Jake better be taking care of Lady too. _

Marshall took note of Bubblegum's depressed expression and put his bass down. He leaned close to her and whispered, "Hey, I got an idea. But don't tell Gum-B. He gets all uppity when random stuff happens. Ya know, he's the kind of guy that likes things planned out. Leave your balcony door unlocked tonight. We'll go out."

"J..just the two of us?" she asked nervously. For some reason she wasn't sure of, the idea of spending an evening with Marshall alone made her heart jump. _Cabbages... I can't be falling for this guy, can I? But what other logical reason is there for me to feel like my stomach is in knots and... ugh, crabapples, my hands feel all clammy._

"Sure, just you and me, BB. Let me show you around Aaa at night. It's totes cool. Plus, it's the only time the green yubies come out."

"What... is a green yubi?" Bubblegum couldn't recall anything she had ever read being referred to as a green yubi.

Marshall looked at her as if she had said something completely asinine. "You've never seen a green yubi?" he asked in disbelief. "They're like, the most awesome creatures this side of the ocean. Man, they're super tiny and they glow in the moonlight, but when they go underwater, the waves glow iridescent colors. It's like a rainbow under a wave."

The scientifically minded Bubblegum's attention was instantly snagged. "They glow, you say? I'd love to see that... maybe get a sample... I wonder if I can take it back to Ooo... maybe they reproduce..." she continued to mumble her thoughts until she drifted off into quiet contemplation.

Her enthusiasm caused Marshall to chuckle slightly. "Guess it's a date then. See you later, BB." Leaving her to her scientific mumbling, Marshall floated back to where Fionna and Gumball were engaged in a light hearted conversation about swords and ice cream.

Bubblegum paced the guest room she had been staying in. She felt... well, perhaps nervous is the correct word for the feeling. For some reason, Marshall Lee made the Princess nervous. There was something in the way he moved, or maybe it was the way he spoke. Whatever it was, there was a magnetic pull towards him that she couldn't seem to shake. He would be at her balcony door soon enough. Her stomach raged like a storm, a jumbled mess of butterflies and nerves. Trying to distract herself, she lay down on the large pink bed with a book. This one was actually a cookbook she had borrowed from Gumball. She was curious about his love for baking and immediately saw the scientific application of the methods. Gleefully, she dove into the book, calculating the results of the suggested ingredients and methods. _It's amazing how precise baking is! So Prince Gumball does have a sort of scientific mind like I do, even if he doesn't realize it._

A loud bump knocked her attention away from the book. The wall behind her shook slightly, causing her to jump and lose her page. "Glob it... what in the name of Ooo was that?"

Marshall's voice carried through the wall faintly. His usually even tone was broken and ragged, "Gumball... w..wait..."

"Did you forget who you belong to, vampire?" Came Gumball's voice. This wasn't the usual cheerful voice that Bubblegum was used to. This was a heavier voice, full of something almost sinister.

"I... I just... I'm just helping!" Marshall shot back. The Vampire King made some sort of muffled noise that Bubblegum couldn't quite make out. Curious and a bit concerned that she may have gotten Marshall in trouble with the Prince, she pressed her ear against the wall. The noises became a bit clearer. "She's waiting for me..."

"Let her wait," Gumball growled. Another lighter bang against the wall followed by a scraping noise. "I'm going to make sure you don't forget, even if I forgive this little playdate of yours."

"Yes... Oh, glob...Gumball..." Marshall's voice had been reduced to a hiss, barely enough for Bubblegum to make out.

She felt the knots in her stomach turn more. A groan carried through the wall, then the sound of another soft bang. Bubblegum's mind was racing, trying to calculate exactly what was going on. It didn't take much and she wasn't exactly a sheltered little Princess, not entirely anyways. A knot-like sensation tightened itself between her thighs as she listened more. The heavy breathing, moaning and small muffled curses were enough to give her a good idea of what was happening on the other side of the pink wall. The logistics of it confused her and she found herself struggling to bring the image to mind. She sat down on the bed, her back pressed against the wall. She could feel the rhythmic vibration of the wall as a body was hit against it in even paced soft slams. Bubblegum couldn't help herself or stop her mind from wandering at a rapid pace. The thumping on the wall became faster, more intense while the groaning and ragged sighing seemed to get louder.

Marshall's voice cried out, almost as if he were in pain. Bubblegum shut her eyes as the nagging knot between her legs throbbed. It was the sounds that brought her to this point. Her body yearned for something long since gone from her mind. She sat in the darkness of her own vision, eyes shut tight and ears absorbing the sounds like a sponge. Were they doing this against _this_ wall on purpose so she could hear? _What the junk? _The urge in her body made her feel nostalgic. Her body could easily recall the sensation of cool gentle fingers on her skin, a long forked tongue on her neck, but her mind couldn't put a face to it. _Am I so desperate for something that I'm fantasizing about Marshall? That's insane, I hardly know him. _

The voices became faint; it seems that they had moved away from the wall. Gumball's room was quite big, so if they weren't against the wall, she couldn't hear anything. Slightly relieved and somehow troubled, Bubblegum got up from the bed. She decided to change her clothes, concerned that perhaps her panties might have been in trouble a moment ago. It wasn't that she desired Gumball or, hopefully not, Marshall. But anyone in their right mind wouldn't be able to hear any of that without feeling _something._ The mind of a scientist was always curious and determining what caused those noises was not a difficult task. She was lucky that Fionna was able to help find her clothes in the Candy Kingdom's town shops.

Bubblegum changed into a fresh pair of panties, a pair of tight blue jeans and purple shirt. She pulled out a pink hoodie that Gumball had given her. It was a little big and smelled of cookies, but it was warm and it was comfortable. She had been right about her panties, however. They were a bit damp and she sighed, her face feeling hot with embarrassment that she had fantasized about her friends.

The knock at her balcony door was a soft one, the real announcement of her friend's presence was the squeak of the hinges as he pushed the door open. "Hey Bonnibel."

"Hey Marshall," she answered. Her face flushed as she took in the incredibly relaxed look and giant grin on his face. "Ready?" She picked up a tiny glass jar from the desk and stuffed it into the pocket of her hoodie.

"Sure thing, Princess." He put two feet on the ground as he stood beside her. "It's a bit of a flight, so excuse me a bit. I promise I won't bite." In a swift movement he wrapped his arm around her knees and lifted her up and used his other arm to support her back. She was surprised at how comfortable her body felt when he picked her up. Her face colored again as she took note of Marshall's scent which was a mix of spices, sunset and cookies. _Cookies? Oh... oh my glob..._ Marshall looked down at her in his arms and gave her a puzzled look. "You okay, BB? Your face is kinda red."

This only caused her to color more. "Oh... I'm fine. So, where are we headed?" she asked, trying to avoid the conversation.

"Huh? Oh, right, we're going to the beach," he replied as they flew through the night sky. "It's a good thing you got Gum-B's hoodie. It's kinda cold out, even to me. I hardly feel the cold anymore, but I'm sure you're freezing."

"I'm ok." She fell silent then, ocassionally looking up at Marshall's angular face. Of anyone she had met in Aaa, he was the most familiar. Everything about him seemed like she had known him all her life, but it still felt foreign in a way. "Hey Marshall, tell me more about yourself."

"Wha? That's kind of unexpected."

Bubblegum pouted a little, her lower lip jutting out faintly. "Why is it unexpected? As a scientist, I process information through inquiry. I'm not asking for your darkest secret... just, tell me something about yourself. Or something from your childhood."

Marshall's face darkened. "That was a long time ago, BB. I'm a thousand years old. I don't really remember much from then. Why are you so curious about me?"

She shrugged slightly. "I just am. I like to know about the people around me, so it's only natural to ask you about yourself. Come on, you can tell me something. Anything."

"Ok, ok." he sighed, finally giving in. "Hmm... well, when I was younger a kind lady gave me a toy. It was a little stuffed bear that I named Hambo. I had that thing for forever. I mean, it was my favorite thing in the entire world. I don't have him anymore, though... my dumb ex Ashley sold it for a stupid wand that didn't do anything."

"That's pretty lame of her," Bubblegum replied, making attempts to be engaging. She wanted to know more, to try and connect the vague memories in her head to the man holding her in the sky.

"Yeah, it was. Pretty lame excuse for a vampire, really. But she's long gone, so even though I don't have Hambo, I have friends like Gumball, Fionna and Cake to keep me company. It's not so bad."

"Where do you live? In a treehouse, maybe?"

Marshall laughed. "Funny you should say that. Fionna and Cake's treehouse used to be mine when Ashley and I were first living together. I carved my initials into it. I went away for awhile, ya know, to kinda... find myself, after things went bad with Ashley. When I came back, this chick and her cat were squatting in my treehouse. Then, like, a day later, I found them again in my cave house. Yeah, I have a cave house."

Bubblegum giggled in response, "A cave house? Isn't that cold and lonely?"

"No way. It's a normal house, just inside a giant cave. So I let Fionna and Cake keep the treehouse and I'm in the cave house now. It's cool, no one really bothers me out there and because it's in a cave, I can play my axe bass whenever I want and as loud as I want."

The pink candy princess smiled. _Maybe my memories _**_are_**_ of Marshall. The house he lives in sounds really familiar. I know I've been to a house in a cave before. Listening to music... with... someone... with cold, soft hands...it has to be him. I can't think of anyone else it might be. Despite how cold his body is, he seems so warm... maybe... glob, I think I like him... but he has Gumball. Cabbages, this isn't good at all._

"Here we are, Princess." Marshall announced. He set her down gently on a sandy beach, just an arm's reach from the water's edge. Tiny glowing green dots moved along the sea foam near her feet and gradually increased as they went further into the water. The water itself was sparkling like a rainbow and it reminded Bubblegum of Lady, just a bit.

"That's amazing, Marshall! Can you catch them?" Bubblegum eagerly took out the tiny glass jar from her pocket and held it up. "I'd love to bring them back to Ooo and study them."

"I dunno, I've never tried it. Careful not to go out too far, BB. The current's pretty strong. Had to ride the giant fish just to get through it one time."

Bubblegum carefully rolled up the legs of her jeans and stepped into the cold water. She shivered slight, but her curiosity was greater than her physical discomfort. Opening the tiny jar, she scooped up some of the green yubies and seafoam, then sealed the jar. As she moved to stand up straight, her foot sank into the consuming wet sand. She frowned, not at all enjoying the cold wetness and the grainy mushiness of the sand and water between her toes. "Uh, Marshall..? Can you give me a hand?"

Marshall let out a small laugh at her expense as he floated casually over the water. Bubblegum reached her hand out to Marshall as he extended his out to grab hers. To his surprise, his hand passed through hers like a mist. "What the... Bubblegum?!"

"Marshall! Wait!" In a fit of deja vu, Bubblegum stretched both her arms out to Marshall, who dove forward towards her. He tumbled into the water, grasping something to his chest. When he breached the surface and floated into the air, only a pink hoodie remained clutched tightly in his arms.


	6. Chapter 6 - When I Don't Remember You

**Thank you everyone who's been really patient with the chapters of Traces of You. For those who follow my other pieces, you can clearly tell that my main focus lately has been ****_The Shattered Looking Glass. _****Don't worry, I don't have plans to abandon ****_Traces of You_****, but it may be a bit of a wait before I can get it all back on track.**

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**When I Don't Remember You**

"Oh my glob, and then, Brad, _ditched me! _He ditched me for Monica! Ugh, she totally thinks her lumps are hot, but she's so fake. Like, I totally heard that she has lump implants. How lame is that?!" LSP's deep nasally voice echoed through the maze as if it were her own personal amplifier. Marceline groaned and did her best to cover her ears.

They had been floating along for several hours. The moon was well above their heads, but having spent so much time with LSP made Marceline wish for the sun to beat down on them. Melting her skin off had to be much more pleasant than this.

"So like, tell me the truth, Marceline. 'Cause PB won't tell me, but are you two, like, an item or something? Jake heard it from Raincorn who heard it from Ice Cream Girl who heard it from Shelby who heard it from Tree Trunks who heard it from Pig who heard it from a Banana Guard who heard it from Finn who heard it from a demon who said he saw you and her, like, totally making out." As LSP rambled, Marceline wondered how the annoying purple cloud could talk and breathe at the same time. She hadn't stopped for a breath at all while she spoke.

"I don't know." Marceline growled. She sped up ahead of LSP, but somehow the lumpy girl kept pace with the vampire.

"Like, it's no big deal if you are or whatever, 'cause that's like, PB's thing or your thing. You're like, the bad boy... bad girl... rocker and she's like... the good girl Princess and junk. It's like a total trashy romance book!"

Marceline came to a screeching halt. One foot hit the ground as she spun around at breakneck speed to face LSP. "Listen, I don't know what the junk you and everyone else are thinking but I don't give a damn right now. All I care about is finding Bonnibel and getting the freak out of this place." She spat out the ancient curse word so hard that she almost spit on LSP. Marceline angrily turned around and continued down the path.

"Ugh, you don't have to like, get all defensive." LSP scoffed. Marceline merely groaned again as she turned a corner. "Oh, like, make a left at the next corner. I think that's where PB's party room was."

"Bonni..." With renewed determination, Marceline placed both feet on the ground. She lowered her stance and clenched her hands into fists. She kicked off the ground and flew down the pathway like a bullet. LSP struggled to keep up, but when the vampire took full advantage of her momentum, not much could pass her.

The turn came quickly, causing Marceline to drift across the ground as she tried to turn. Without losing a beat, she jetted forward, the base of the pyramid just on the horizon. Quite a ways behind her, LSP huffed and puffed to follow.

The pyramid itself was not very large. In fact, the only thing inside it was the room that held Princess Bubblegum. Marceline came to a screeching halt, her boots nearly causing smoke to rise up from her heels. She stopped in the center of the pyramid where Bubblegum's motionless body hung in midair, suspended in a strange blue pillar of light. "Bonni..." Marceline whispered softly, stretching her hand out to touch the Princess's face.

"Oh my glob, it's like a dance club in here! Look at the light! Yes! Blue is totally hot. It makes my lumps way sexy. Brad won't be able to resist!" LSP had finally caught up to Marceline and didn't waste any time in continuing with her 'party observations.' She took out a half used lipstick tube and smeared the remainder of the rogue on her lips. One could only guess where she found the lipstick, it wasn't with her before and it didn't seem that Lumpy Space People had pockets in their lumps. "Glob, I am _so lumping hot!_"

"Shhh!" Marceline hissed, which miraculously made LSP quiet down. She floated off to a corner of the pyramid's room and wiggled her lumps at a pair of mice huddled there. _Finally... Freakish delusional princess... Have no idea how she and Bonni are friends... Ugh! More importantly, how the junk do I get Bonnibel out of here? _Marceline floated in front of Bubblegum's body, hovered around her in a circle and even floated upside down to see if she could figure out how to wake up Bubblegum. _Maybe I should kiss her? No way, that's so lame. Slap her face? Glob, if that works she's gonna be so pissed at me. What if I just... _No longer satisfied with just thinking of ways to help Bubblegum, Marceline rolled up her sleeves. She wasn't a thinker like Bonnibel, she was better off just getting things done. She floated closer to Bubblegum's body and gently put her hands on the Princess's hips. Frowning after no reaction, she wrapped them around her waist and buried her face in the silent candy girl's neck. "Sorry, Bonni... I found you but I don't know how to help you. You're, like, the uber brain lord here. I'm just...just...just Marceline, the vampire queen. Pretty useless too. For all my power, I can't do a single thing to help."

A loud raspy cry echoed through the room as Bubblegum's eyes flew open and she tilted her head back, gasping for air. She wrapped her arms tightly around Marceline, who brought her down to the ground slowly. The Princess coughed and gasped, then suddenly stopped and looked around frantically. In her hands, she held tightly to a tiny glass jar filled with green liquid. A smile crept up on her face before she finally looked up at Marceline.

"Marshall, thank you...I almost got pulled...wait, what did you do to your hair? I mean, I liked it short but... Hmm... It's so long and there's so much of it!" She sat down and began patting at her chest. "Wait, where's Gumball's hoodie? I'm wearing my dress again... Oh dear, I think I'm back. But, Marshall, you came back with me! Gumball is going to be so worried!"

Marceline's eyebrows furrowed together in an obvious show of confusion. "Woah, woah, slow down, Bonni. Who the junk is Marshall?" A tiny seed of jealousy planted itself in Marceline's stomach, quickly rooting itself and making her insides turn.

"Glob, you're being weird. Well, first, where are we? This isn't the castle."

LSP floated over to them, having spent enough of her attention on the mice. "Ugh, those guys were so lame. You're finally joining the party, PB? I can't believe you were lumping sleeping in here. This place is boring. Where's the music?"

"I _am _home! Lumpy Space Princess, it's so good to see you again!" Bubblegum exclaimed as she jumped up to hug LSP.

The fluffy purple princess rolled her eyes and returned the hug. "Yeah, whatever. This party is so lame. I wanna go home."

"Yes, home. That is a wonderful idea. I would love to get back to my lab and study these green yubies." Bubblegum gleefully held up the green jar.

"Green...what? Whatever, we need to get out of here and meet up with Finn and Jake." Marceline stated. She took Bubblegum by the hand and led her out of the pyramid. She felt angry and relieved at once, firstly about whomever Marshall was and secondly that Bubblegum was safe and relatively normal, for Princess Bubblegum, that is. Marceline kept her feet on the ground, walking slightly ahead of the Princess as she chatted with LSP.

_At least she's keeping LSP distracted. If I had to hear one more story about Brad, I swear I was gonna turn that girl into a pillow. _Despite feeling better now that Bonnibel was back with her, she was seething. Finally she stopped and turned around, glaring at Bubblegum.

"Do you have any idea how scared I was when you disappeared, Bonni?! Then you appear here and talk about this Marshall? Who the junk is Marshall?!"

Bubblegum looked utterly confused. She tilted her head curiously and frowned, "I know you like to play games, but you don't need to snap at me just to trick me into thinking you're not who you are, Marshall Lee. I know you must be frustrated but I'll find a way to get you back to Prince Gumball, I promise."

"Wha..Just stop. Stop right there, Bonni. This isn't funny anymore. It's me, Marceline. I have no idea who Marshall Lee or Prince Gumball are, but it all sounds like a bad trip."

"Mar...celine? I'm sorry, but that doesn't sound familiar at all. But if you're not Marshall, you're certainly a convincing look-alike! Same eyes, same hair, although longer... Musician, yes? Eats red from tomatoes and in love with Prince Gumball." Bubblegum paused. "Well, I assume he's in love with Gumball."

Marceline shrugged, "Totally off, Princess. I can't stand tomatoes, they give me nightmares. And I'm not in love with Prince Gumball or whoever, I love...umm..." Marceline sighed, glancing between Bubblegum and LSP. "Forget about it. Lets just keep going."

"Ohmigosh, this drama is like, totally intense." LSP muttered behind her hands which covered her mouth in an over dramatic pose. For once, she decided that she should be silent and just observe. Dramas on tv didn't change just because you yelled at the screen, she figured this wouldn't be any different...this time.

Bubblegum frowned with concern. She watched Marceline float ahead of herself and LSP; a sense of nostalgia engulfed her chest. After a moment of thought, she skipped ahead a few paces and caught up with Marceline. The raven haired vampire didn't seem to notice her until Bubblegum softly grasped the hem of Marceline's red shirt. It wasn't anything fancy, just a simple long sleeved button down shirt that hugged the vampire's torso and made her look just a bit cooler with the sleeves rolled up. It wasn't special, but Marceline knew Bonnibel had always liked it..or liked ripping it open.

Marceline stopped and glared at Bubblegum. She wouldn't admit to it, but her feelings were hurt, her heart ached and she felt like a complete fool. "What?" she snapped.

"Marceline? I'm sorry," Bubblegum apologized. Marceline's heart skipped a would-be beat. _Glob, was she pranking me this entire time? That's insane! But...does she remember me, then? _Bubblegum's expression as she looked up at Marceline was sincerely apologetic. "I feel strange. It is as if, something is not right...here. I speculate that it may have something to do with you. If you don't mind, I would like to remain at your side. It seems that this feeling subsides when you are near in physical proximity."

The words that came spilling out of the Princess's soft pink lips made Marceline grit her teeth to try and stop her tears. She was a tough, 'screw the world' rocker Vampire Queen. Simple words weren't meant to bring her to tears, she couldn't let anyone see that. She brought herself to the ground and wrapped her arms around the Princess's neck, drawing her close. "Bonnibel... I swear, I'm not going anywhere until you remember me."

Bubblegum was taken by surprise. She paused as Marceline embraced her, then slowly answered with her arms around the vampire's waist. "Thank you. I would like to start from the beginning." She pulled away slightly so that she was facing Marceline. The wave of nostalgia crashed over Bubblegum as she saw her reflection in Marceline's vicious yellow eyes. "Hello, Marceline. My name is Princess Bonnibel Bubblegum, Ruler of the Candy Kingdom."

Marceline smiled her classically crooked smile, tiny fangs protruding past lifeless lips. "Hey, Bonnibel. I'm Marceline, the Vampire Queen."

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**Hope you guys enjoyed this one. It's a little fluffy, I'd say. I'm working on the next one soon. I'd love to hear your reviews!**


	7. Chapter 7 - Of Fire and Ice

**Sorry for the long wait, everyone. I'm really behind in this story because I've been putting all my energy into "The Shattered Looking Glass." I'm halfway through Chapter 8 of this fic, though, so don't worry about waiting TOO long for an update. Also, fair warning, no Bubbline in this chapter. We kinda needed to see what Jake, Finn and Ice King were up to.**

**As always, I don't own the AT characters. **

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**Of Fire and Ice**

Rescuing Lady Ranicorn was remarkably easy. The three armed cyclops that LSP had warned them about was actually very nearsighted. Jake was able to sneak Lady out of the cage without the cyclops ever noticing. Once free, Lady immediately rushed home, she had semi-adult pups waiting for her to return. Jake agreed that it was best he head off to find Finn and Flame Princess.

Stretching himself as tall as any tower, Jake was able to see the lake from over the top of the maze. The lake itself was hidden behind a magical spell, but Flame Princess was a force to be reckoned with even if she was surrounded by water. A billowing pillar of smoke rose high into the sky, pinpointing her location. It seemed as if she had set her entire little island on fire in a tantrum. What else was a fiery (literally) 15-year-old Princess to do? She certainly wasn't the damsel in distress type. When Jake arrived at the lake, he found Finn and the Ice King standing at the edge, staring into the water.

"Hey, bro...Ice King..." Jake greeted them as he joined them at the water's edge.

"Hey, Jake." Finn answered. He looked slightly haggard and bits of his golden blonde hair hung out from under his hood. Clearly the time spent with the Ice King had taken a toll on him.

"Jake! Glad you're here, buddy. We're having a problem crossing the lake to get to the hottie... I mean, Flame Princess." Ice King stated.

"What's wrong?"

"Its total bunk, man. If you go in the water, these merfolk try to drag you under. Ice King tried to fly me across, but then giant tentacles came out and almost grabbed us. It knocked us back to this side. Then there's a giant flame monster on the other side. It doesn't seem to be hurting FP, but it was throwing fireballs at us." Finn complained. He was starting to become disheartened and frustrated with the situation.

Jake paused and stared at them in disbelief. He strained his eyes and gazed into the water. Sure enough, imp sized merfolk were swimming around the water with tiny spears in their hands. Further below, Jake could barely make out the form of some kind of tentacle equipped monster. He raised his head and saw a humanoid elemental of flame pacing the edge of the island and Flame Princess, standing stationary with her arms folded and a scowl on her face.

"Guys, I have a plan. We're gonna need your help, Ice King." The blue wizard grinned happily as Jake brought them together in a huddle.

Moments later, Finn stood at the edge of the lake with his sword drawn. The Ice King was glaring at Finn's drawn demon sword with hands poised for attack. Jake, who was a ways off from them in the water, raised two enormous fists in the air.

Finn turned his back on the Ice King and began running into the water. Jakes giant fists slammed into the water's surface, causing the merfolk to be carried up into a giant wave. The Ice King released a large ice spell he had been building up and struck the wave. The spell materialized as lightning-like ice spears jutting from his blue hands into the wave. The wave solidified into ice. It caught up with Finn, pushing him forward like a bullet.

Lowering his stance, Finn rode the ice wave. His sword brushed the edge of the ice, absorbing its magic into the blade. Halfway through the lake, the ice wave reached its peak. The momentum shot Finn across the remainder of the lake, straight towards the fire elemental that pranced around the shore of the island. His demon blade, now encased in a coating of magical ice, glowed purple as he brandished it in front of him. In one shot, he drove a hole through the elemental like a drill. The elemental burst into a cloud of steam and fire screams. Losing his speed, Finn hit the ground on his feet, using the sword to stop himself in the sand, drawing a jagged angry line into the ground.

"Flame Princess!" he shouted.

Arms crossed and scowling, the fiery girl appeared from behind a rock where she had ducked to avoid Finn's incoming attack. "Finn?"

"I'm here to rescue you, Princess!" he said gleefully, breathing heavy and sweat forming on his brow. The flight had taken a toll on his stamina, even for a hero.

"That's all well and good, Finn, but how are we to get across? I can't go through the water and there are evil little merpeople in there." Flame Princess's hair whipped about like an excited blaze as she narrowed her eyes across the water to where two figures were moving across the ice wave.

"No sweat, Princess. We've got it." Finn looked in the same direction as the Princess's gaze to Jake and the Ice King who were creating a bridge out of water and ice.

"Finn, if I walk across an ice bridge, it will just melt. Remember? Fire elemental."

The Ice King and Jake made it to the other side safely and looked back at their ice bridge. Encased in the ice were the merfolk who had risen up from the depths in attempts to attack them.

"Hey FP. Nice work, buddy. That fire elemental didn't know what hit him." Jake said proudly, as if it had been him who had taken out the fire elemental.

"Me too!" the Ice King chimed in. "I helped! We're an awesome team, guys!"

"Guys!" Flame Princess stomped her foot to get their attention, "I still can't cross the ice bridge!"

"Ice King?" Finn asked with a smile. The Ice King nodded and raised his hands, wiggling blue fingers excitedly. He shot a small spell at Finn, turning his entire body blue. "Awesome. Check it out, Princess. Ice Ward. It'll protect me from your flames but won't do anything to you."

"Are you sure?" she asked, looking at him rather warily. Finn walked over to her and thrust his sword into his backpack holster. He lifted her up into his arms, quite happy that the Ice King's spell worked.

"I've been working on that spell for awhile," the Ice King announced, "You know, in case we ever got married, Flame Princess."

"Dude, that's not okay." Jake said. "Here, get on my back and I'll carry us across the bridge.

Carrying Flame Princess in his arms, Finn jumped onto a growing Jake's back. The Ice King simply used his magical beard to fly along side them. They hurried on to the ice bridge towards the other end where they came.

As they crossed the halfway point of the bridge, large black tentacles shot out of the unfrozen water and wrapped themselves around the bridge. The tentacles constricted around the bridge, shattering the ice and dropping large chunks into the water.

"Hurry, Jake!" Finn pleaded.

"I'm trying, dude! I can't run on ice!" his friend answered back.

Multiple tentacles shot out, each one nearly catching them in its path to crush the bridge behind them.

"FP, don't hate me for this!" Finn shouted. He stood up on Jake's back and hurled Flame Princess into the air towards the shore. The distance wasn't far, but as a human, Finn's throwing speed was not as powerful as one would think.

"Finn!" Flame Princess flew through the air. At the peak of her arc, Ice King caught her by the hands with his and carried her across to safety. To her surprise, the Ice King's blue hands didn't burn nor did she feel her flames be threatened by him.

Just as Jake reached the other shore with Finn on his back, a tentacle shot out and grabbed Finn by the leg, dragging him below the now icy water. He yanked out his sword and slashed at the beast with slowed force from the water. The ice spell had worn off in the water and he was slowly losing air and feeling in his body. He thrust his sword into the tentacle. Whatever beast it was attached to let out a shriek of pain and tossed him out of the water like a rag. His body sailed through the air and landed roughly onto the beach.

Jake, Flame Princess and Ice King rushed to Finn's side where he lay unconscious in the sand. Jake touched Finn's arm and turned to Flame Princess. "He's totally frozen! I don't think he's breathing!"

Desperate to not lose her hero, Flame Princess threw her arms around Finn, her flames engulfing his body. Slowly the ice in his system began to melt from her embrace. He opened his eyes and coughed up bits of ice and water. She released him immediately so to not burn his body.

"Finn, you're all right!"

"Dude," he coughed, looking up at Jake. "That was awesome! Ice King... thanks, man. You totally rocked this time."

The Ice King's face lit up excitedly, relishing in the praise from his new friends.

"Glad you made it, bro. Let's get out of this bunk maze and find Marceline and PB." Jake said, helping Finn up on his feet.

"For sure, man. Let's go home."

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**This one was a little short... give me a few more days and Chapter 8 will be up. almost done. =)**


	8. Chapter 8 - The Way to You

**Seriously, readers, your patience with my posting is well appreciated. I'm really falling behind in this one and my Once fanfiction because of real life junk. It's not as fun, I can tell you. **

**Anyhow, if you've been waiting for the smut, here it is, dirty birds!**

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**The Way to You**

"You guys are so boring!" came the complaint from LSP. Marceline and Bubblegum had been walking at a slower pace through the night. The sun was just beginning to rise and Marceline was concerned for her own safety once the sun was above them. They walked in the shade where they could to keep her from burning, but finding the way out was taking longer than they had planned. LSP couldn't take it anymore. Bubblegum had been remarkably quiet and Marceline had little to say. Frustrated, she decided that she would take off on her own, leaving the Queen and the Princess alone in the maze to find their own way out.

Marceline was relieved. LSP had been blabbering on and on about her friends from Lumpy Space and the elusive Brad. She talked about her family of wolves and the drama she had drummed up with them before they drove her out. Then she went on about Brad and Melissa and other inhabitants of Lumpy Space. The vampire was sick of it. She wanted to be home and away from LSP. At this point, she would have traded anything for a strawberry or two. Part of her irritation with LSP was from the Princess's attitude, the rest was purely from hunger. It was nearly a day since she had eaten the color from the strawberries Finn had in his backpack and now she had nothing. Bonnibel's skin, the color in her clothes, the pinkness of her hair were all looking irresistibly delicious. Her stomach growled angrily.

Bubblegum stopped and pulled on Marceline's shirt. "Are you okay, Marceline?" she asked quietly.

Marceline stopped and turned around to face Bubblegum. They were huddled close to the wall where just enough shade hid her from the oncoming cruel sunlight. "Oh, yeah. I'm okay. Just a little hungry."

"Oh." The response was quiet and Marceline shrugged. Even if the Princess forgot who she was, it didn't stop Bonnibel's usual show of concern for the occasional person. Marceline turned to continue walking, but Bubblegum had yet to release her grip from the vampire's shirt. "Wh-what is it?"

"What do you like to eat? Marshall would eat the color from chili peppers and tomatoes. But you don't eat tomatoes, right?" Something in the back of her mind made her think of the sensation of her own color being drawn from her pink skin. She blushed furiously and stared at the ground. She swore it was her imagination. Bubblegum had no memory of Marceline and she certainly never allowed for Marshall to drink from her.

"Oh, um... Mostly strawberries and apples, but I can actually just eat the red out of almost anything. But since we don't have anything, I'm just gonna have to suck it up." Marceline answered with a slight grin at her own joke. Perhaps her hunger was making her a little loopy, but she'd deal with it. Bubblegum nodded quietly and released her grip on Marceline. The vampire sighed and continued on down the path. "Let's keep moving, Princess."

A strange mix of emotions raged a war within Bubblegum's stomach but she didn't know why. Every time she looked at Marceline walking ahead of her, a tightening sensation in her chest pulled at her heart guts like taffy. It was the same feeling as when she was near Marshall. Something long forgotten, lost but so incredibly fresh in her mind, she felt honestly confused. The vampire, no, both vampires had a sort of eerie predatory nature to them. While Marshall felt like a serpent teasing a kill, Marceline felt like a stalking wolf, biding her time and behaving rather grumpily. Bubblegum frowned. That she-wolf of a vampire hardly knew the Princess, how dare she behave with such an attitude. But just as quickly as Bubblegum's anger set on, it disappeared after a quick glance again at Marceline. She was seductive in her movements withou even trying. Bubblegum's gaze became fixated on the vampire's thin hips, her long dark wild hair and the bite scar on an otherwise perfectly blue-grey neck.

The Princess didn't quite understand nor could she even begin to understand out here in the wilderness without her books. The feelings that had nested in her stomach were confusing and intense. But in the end, they rendered her to a blushing young girl with a vivid imagination. She hated it. She hated this feeling of want but not knowing what she wanted or why. All she had to rely on out here was her instinct.

They turned a corner and found a nicely shaded alcove with a large tree growing right in the center. It's large thick trunk encompassed most of the alcove. It seemed the maze was built around it. Marceline floated over to it and peeked behind the tree. There was just enough space between the roots and the wall where they could rest for awhile. She came out from behind the tree again and waved over to Bubblegum.

"Let's stop here for awhile, Bonni. We're running out of shade down the pathways and I can't keep going without something to guard me from the sun." She reached out her hand to the Princess who looked at it hesitantly. Marceline sighed in aggravation, "I'm not going to bite you, Princess."

Led by Marceline's surprisingly gentle hand, Bubblegum climbed into an open space between two large roots. Grass had grown around the tree, giving them soft ground cover to sit on. As she leaned against the trunk of the tree she looked up and saw Marceline hovering above her with arms crossed behind her head. Instinctively, Bubblegum reached up and snatched the vampire by her waist, pulling her down to the ground.

"Woah! Hey, Bonni, what are you doing?!"

Arms wrapped completely around Marceline's waist, Bubblegum buried her face in the vampire's back and jet black hair. "You smell like spices and strawberries."

_Glob it! What is she doing?! I can barely keep my hands off her as it is! It's been forever since I tasted her shade... This is bad. She's way too close. _Marceline moved to put space between herself and the Princess, but Bonnibel's arms remained tightly wrapped around her thin waist. Marceline fidgeted, "Uh... Yeah... What's up with this? I thought you didn't know who I am."

"I don't," the Princess answered, "But without my laboratory and library to help me make send of things, I've nothing but my gut instincts to go on."

Marceline folded her arms and scoffed aloud. "Your instincts told you to grab a hungry vampire by the waist?"

"No, my instincts told me that you're a good person and that you feel safe." Bubblegum released Marceline then and relaxed against the tree. She closed her eyes, taking in the nearness of Marceline and the cool shade of the tree. "If it will help you, are you opposed to feeding from me?"

Marceline's brain exploded. She turned around in the air and came to her feet in front of Bubblegum. "Do you have any idea what you just said? Maybe you're delusional. You should just rest."

Bubblegum shook her head and stood up, standing toe to toe with Marceline, gazing at her curiously. "I do not understand why you should refuse my offer. It is clear you are hungry and you're a vampire. I don't see any other shades of red here and I'm the closest thing there is to the right color. You helped me out of that pyramid mind-prison thing, so the least I can do is help you."

"You're...not afraid of me? I'm the Vampire Queen, you know. Conqueror of the Nightosphere, Daughter of The Lord of Evil!" As she announced her titles, it was as if the sky itself were paying fearful homage to her with dark clouds and thunder. Bubblegum shook her head and wrapped her arms around Marceline's wait. The dark clouds disappeared immediately, bathing the world in bright color and sunlight again. Marceline was glad for the tree's impenetrable canopy of shade. "You should be afraid, Bonni."

"I don't know who you are, Marceline the Vampire Queen. But what I do know is that having you around makes me feel comfortable. I carried this feeling of emptiness with me and I do not know what causes it. But I don't feel that when you're here with me. I want to understand why it is you that makes me feel this way when I don't remember you. So please, as your friend, let me help you." Bubblegum buried her face in Marceline's shoulder. She reached up with one hand and pulled her soft bubblegum hair away from her neck.

Marceline hissed softly and her stomach angrily responded. Bonni had called her a 'friend.' That was probably the best she was going to get today. She stared hard at the soft shade of pink on Bonnibel's neck, her hand, even her dress. The Princess had liked it before. She had demanded it, begged for it years ago when she would breach her threshold of pleasure. Marceline wondered if she would react the same way now, when the Princess couldn't even recall as single memory of the vampire, let alone the deliciously lewd things they used to do. "Are you sure about this, Bonni?"

The response came as a silent nod of permission. Marceline's self control became unshackled as she leaned her head in to kiss the pink skin before her. Bubblegum shivered slightly. She felt a warm sensation fill her chest as a strong, agile forked tongue slowly snaked its way across her neck. She was sensitive there, experiencing a feeling that was ticklish and sensual all at once.

Nostalgia and want became Marceline's guide. Bonnibel was as she remembered, sweet like cotton candy and gumdrops, with a faint aroma of chemicals. Marceline had always enjoyed it, that was Bonnibel's scent, her essence. The vampire wanted more, she hasn't even gotten to Bonni's color yet, but she definitely knew she wanted more of the candy princess.

Marceline stopped caressing the Princess's neck with her tongue. She would get what she wanted, she swore to herself. She cupped Bubblegum's face in her cold grey hands and gently kissed her pink lips. Bubblegum's body stiffened at first but then her body relaxed in submission. Marceline's tongue demanded entrance into the Princess's mouth. She obliged, just slightly, and relished in the sensation of the hot forked tongue snaking around her own. Her knees abandoned strength and became as jelly, no longer able to support Bubblegum's weight. Marceline had a secure grip around her waist and with one unusually strong hand for such a thin girl, she lifted Bubblegum's leg around her hip. The Princess responded by finding the strength in her legs again and wrapped it around Marceline's waist.

Bubblegum broke the kiss and gasped for air. Marceline blushed slightly, having forgotten that the Princess required oxygen although she did not. "More." Bonnibel demanded with heavy breaths. She couldn't wait for Marceline's slow and sensual tactics. She grabbed the vampire by the mess of hair and pulled her into yet another breathless kiss. Marceline inwardly smirked, she enjoyed it when Bonnibel took the lead. It was arousing to have the prim and proper Candy Princess take control.

Bubblegum's body was honest. Her breaths were hot and dripped heavily with desire, every action she made was filled to the brim with an animalistic need. To Bonnibel, it was as if her body knew something her brain did not. She did not need to think about it, her body writhed against Marceline's as if possessed by some unknown demon of sexual avarice. There was no questions to be asked, regardless of her mental memory, Bubblegum's physical memory knew Marceline.

But the Princess wanted more, she didn't even know what exactly she wanted more of, except all of the things she felt. She wanted it. Deft pink hands found their way beneath Marceline's shirt, working swiftly across the buttons and slipping the troublesome red garment off of the vampire's body. Those hands, guided by Bubblegum's inner demon of desire, brushed pink fingertips softly across grey skin. Marceline gasped as the wandering fingertips found her breasts and grasped them, palms rubbing across her hardened nipples.

She wouldn't be outdone. Bonnibel could have some control, not all of it. Finding the zipper on Bonni's dress was easy. Luckily it moved down her back smoothly, it just wouldn't have been as cool if the zipper got stuck. Satisfied, Marceline skillfully unsnapped the Princess's bra with one hand. She was two for two this time, her pride swelled just a bit. She peeled the dress off of the Princess's torso, exposing perfectly pink, round breasts. Marceline pulled away from the clash of tongues and hissed. She craned her neck to kiss the princess's jawline, releasing a soft sigh from Bonnibel. Her free hand cupped one of Bonnibel's breasts in her hand, gently stroking the nipple before squeezing it lightly between two fingers. The Princess felt her arousal spread from within her chest to the tight knot-like pull between her legs. Her body wanted Marceline more than her mind cared to admit. The very idea of doing this sort of lewd, pleasurable, sensual thing with a stranger only ignited Bonnibel's growing desire.

"Is this how you normally drink the color from people?" she whispered breathily.

"Just you, Princess." Marceline answered. She wrapped her tongue around a pert pink nipple, drawing more sighs from the Princess.

"Marceline, please..." Bonnibel pleaded, her voice coated in desire like honey. Feeling that Marceline had a secure grip on her leg, she brought up her other leg, wrapping herself completely around the girl's thin waist, her arms locked around her neck.

Marceline's mind broke. As the Princess wrapped herself around the vampire, Marceline could clearly feel the wetness that had become like a fountain between Bonnibel's legs. She felt her sweet juices rub against her stomach. The vampire could no longer be satisfied with just teasing the girl. She moved forward and pushed Bubblegum against the trunk of the tree, using it as support. Holding the princess's waist with one arm, Marceline wiggled one hand between her stomach and Bonnibel's center. The Princess gasped as Marceline's fingers gently stroked her outer folds through soaked panties. Bonnibel whimpered as Marceline moved the wet fabric and slid a slender finger across her dripping core.

"Marceline... Marci, please... I want it..." the Princess begged.

"What do you want, Bonni? Care to tell me?" Marceline hummed seductively into Bubblegum's ear.

A small fraction of Bubblegum's remaining consciousness felt embarrassed suddenly at Marceline's request. The vampire blew gently into Bubblegum's ear, drawing a flustered answer from her. "Marceline, I want to feel you inside me! Please, I can't wait any longer!"

More than happy to oblige and empowered by Bonnibel's seductive begging, Marceline slipped one slender finger into the Candy Princess, curling inside her to press against the most sensitive bit of her core. Bubblegum let out a noise that was something between a shriek, a moan and a whimper. Her body shivered at Marceline's touch and she tightened the grip around her neck with her arms.

"Glob...Bonni, you're totally wet." Marceline muttered softly. But Bonnibel was too far gone. She raised her hips and brought them down hard onto Marceline's hand, grinding herself against the vampire in a desperate attempt to absorb more of the pleasurable feeling that engulfed her. Marceline rewarded her with another finger.

"Yes, Marci... Oh glob, you feel so good. I can't...I mean..." Bubblegum whimpered into Marceline's neck. She continued to grind her hips down on Marceline, reveling in the relieving feeling that the girl's touch gave her. She cried out as Marceline added a third finger, filling her completely. She instinctively bit into Marceline's shoulder, sucking and nibbling into her grey flesh. Marceline gasped in return, losing her last bit of control. She didn't need to take color from Bonnibel's neck. Anything would do. Since the Princess had clamped herself on Marceline's shoulder, the vampire responded in kind.

Bonnibel gasped breathily as she felt Marceline's teeth puncture her skin above her collarbone. She felt her color leave her body, a strange sensual feeling that she vaguely recalled in her muddled memories. The sensation of her color moving around under her skin was indescribable. It was like her lover's hands were stroking her skin, below the surface, in a deliciously addictive movement. It was unlike anything that Bonnibel knew, but it was uniquely familiar and with every slow draw of color, she felt her arousal growing.

Her entire body shook and her hips moved faster on their own, Marceline's fingers delving deep into her, pulling her into an orgasm that disturbed her very center. The feeling of Marceline inside her, stroking her insides and rubbing against the delicate flesh, sent her mind into a white-hot oblivion. The pull of her color from beneath her skin prolonged her orgasm. Marceline released her teeth from Bonnibel's shoulder and kissed her lips, pushing her tongue into the Princess's eager mouth. Her body convulsed in her orgasm as she screamed in pleasure into the kiss she shared with Marceline.

Her hunger satiated, Marceline gently moved to withdraw her fingers from within the Princess. Bubblegum's body was still coming down from her orgasm and Marceline found that her hand was a bit stuck, having her fingers gripped by the muscles in Bonnibel. She lay the Princess down in the grass below them and kissed her again. This time her kiss was softer, much more gentle and not raging with unfulfilled desire. Bonnibel's body relaxed, her legs slid off of Marceline and the vampire withdrew her hand with a slight sigh of relief and satisfaction. She gazed at the Candy Princess, who's dress was crudely pushed around her waist and her hands blindly attempting to cover her chest, while she fought to catch her breath. Marceline smirked as she lashed out her tongue to taste the sweet evidence of Bubblegum's orgasm on her fingers.

"Marceline, that's distasteful!" she scolded with a blush.

The vampire merely smiled and lay her body across Bubblegum's, taking in her warmth against her own chilled skin. She allowed gravity to win out against her natural ability and fully laid down on Bonnibel. The Princess wrapped her arms around Marceline's neck and sighed. "Thanks, Bonni." Marceline said quietly.

Bubblegum suddenly became embarrassed with herself. She could hardly believe she allowed herself to be taken so savagely by a woman she didn't know out in the untamed wilderness. Her very sense of propriety was compromised as she recalled how well Marceline knew how to get Bonnibel's body to respond so honestly to her. She felt so morally wrong, yet it was as if it was the most natural thing in the world for her to give her body to the vampire as she just did.

An unknown wave of emotion took over her body as she held Marceline against her. She felt herself succumb to sobs and tears ran down her face. Marceline pushed herself up and looked down at Bubblegum, her face contorted in worry. "Bonni? What's wrong? Why are you crying? Did I hurt you?"

Bonnibel sobbed as she covered her eyes with her hands. "No, it's not that. I've never felt anything like that in my life. It was like you were in my head, you knew everything I wanted before I knew! I just... Marceline, it was so wonderful, the way you touched me... I need to know who you are and why you make me feel this way."

"Bonni... I..." Marceline bit her lower lip nervously.

Bubblegum calmed down slightly and reached up to touch Marceline's face. She smiled as she stretched forward to place a soft kiss on the vampire's cold lips. "Please be patient with me, Marceline. But don't leave me. I won't stop until I know who you truly are. If I never find out, then I will spend my hours learning about you."

Marceline sat back, her mouth hanging open and tears beginning to sting the corners of her eyes. Before she realized it, her face was wet with tears. They dripped down her cheeks and onto Bubblegum's exposed pink stomach. The princess gently touched Marceline's shoulder where she had bit the vampire. The powerful Queen of the Vampires had no words for the sweet Candy Princess, only silence and grateful tears.


End file.
